[Grovenet] question

[Allen Warren]

In this week's News Times is a report on Cornelius officials considering foreclosure on deliquent properties, i.e. owners of the properties are said to be deliquent in paying city fees.

One of the owners highlighted is Terry Emmert, who is said to owe $486,340 in principal and interest for sewer and sidewalk improvements near his property the city performed in the late 1990s.  According to the article, Emmert is claiming he didn't know he owed anything to the city for the improvements, which occurred prior to him purchasing the property.

In the past 20 years, my wife and I have purchased & sold a few properties.  Every time we purchased a new property, we paid fees to a Title company for Title insurance.

Here are my questions:
#1. Don't commercial property transactions also use involve Title insurance?
#2. Wouldn't fees such as those needing to be collected from Emmert by the city of Cornelius have shown up in a title search?

just wondering . . . thanks!
 
Allen Warren